Queensland University of Technology Phd student Felicity Lawrence is looking into the prevalence and consequences of a negative work place and cyber communication in the Australian public sector. Photo: Jay Cronan

But there's no doubt about the devastating effects on a worker's mental health of online harassment from their colleagues, bosses and even members of the public.

Now some groundbreaking research by an Australian University, backed by a UK institution looks set to shed some much-needed light on this murky side of our government workplaces.

Queensland University of Technology PhD candidate Felicity Lawrence is looking for thousands of public servants and other government workers to complete a survey about their perceptions of cyber-bullying in their workplaces.

Ms Lawrence says her preliminary investigations have left no doubt in her mind about certain aspects of the subject.

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“It's happening,” she said.

“It's happening and I'm very concerned, now that I've done the research.

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“There's been substantial research into teenaged, school yard, youth cyber-bullying.

“But these kids are growing up and bringing with them their technological abilities and you just have to accept that this is something that's going to happen in the workforce, human nature being the way it is.”

The University of Sheffield has emerged as a world leader in researching workplace cyber-bullying and is developing a tool that will allow employers to measure the severity of their workforces.

Things in Australia are not that far advanced yet and Ms Lawrence says it is imperative to understand the nature and extent of the problem before solutions can be found.

“We're working toward a solution,” she said.

“We know something is happening, we just don't know what and we don't know what people's perceptions are about it.

“We don't know how widespread this is and we don't know the impact, that's the other thing that I'm trying to identify.

“Not only the effect that this sort of thing can have on someone's work performance but also their job satisfaction and their health.”

The former ADF member and Defence Department public servant says that participation in her online survey is the first step.

“It depends on how far I can get this survey out, I would say hundreds, if not a thousand or a couple of thousand,” Ms Lawrence.

“All I'm asking at the moment is people's perceptions of this behavior, whether it be something they've experienced or something they've seen around them in the workplace.”

The hidden enemy:

An anonymous online group established to bully a senior executive who made an unpopular decision.

A public servant had comments taken from his private Facebook account, copied into an email and sent around the office.

A bureaucrat constantly harassed with emails from her boss to complete a piece of work in a “completely unreasonable” timeframe.